Return of the Shirt
Recap Ted finds a shirt he bought six years before, and has not worn for ages, and finds that he likes it, even though before that day he had never considered wearing it. He meets everyone else down at the bar, and finds out that they all like the shirt. He also finds that he suddenly likes Bourbon, which he had hated before. He decides that maybe he should start considering girls he has previously dated; Barney objects to this idea, saying that the only reason to date a girl one has previously dated is if she received breast implants. Ted ignores Barney's advice and decides to re-date Natalie. Initially Ted isn't sure if she would remember him, but it turns out she hasn't forgotten Ted. When Lily confronts Ted about why Natalie would hang up on Ted so rudely, Ted reveals that he broke up with her on her birthday by leaving a message on her answering machine (Natalie also reveals that this happened as her friends were waiting to give her a surprise party, which resulted in everyone at the party hearing the message). Lily begins slapping him, saying that he shouldn't have broken up with her on her birthday, or broken up with her on her answering machine. The guys all point out that there is no good way to break up with a girl. Ted then visits Natalie's apartment, apologizing for his past behavior, and begging for a second chance, with the help of a sock monkey. She decides to give him a second chance, and things appear to be going well. However, despite how much everyone else likes her, Ted feels that she isn't "the one", and has to break up with her. However, Lily encourages him to do it the right way and be honest, and he takes her advice. However, at dinner right before he is about to break up with her, she tells him it is her birthday, and when he breaks up with her again, she demands a good explanation, and when Ted can't give her a satisfactory response, she uses what she learned in a Krav Maga class to beat Ted up. Ted then returns to the bar in pain with the shirt torn and ripped, and decides that there really is no good way to break up with someone. Along with this life lesson, what Ted's son also learns from his father's story is that his father was beat up by a girl. Meanwhile, Barney dares Robin to say or do questionable things on the air with Metro News 1 for money. Robin refuses at first, but performs Barney's first dare when a Freudian slip causes her to say the word "nipple" when she meant to say the word "nickel." She then does the second dare, saying "I'm a dirty, dirty girl," at the end of a news story and spanking herself. When she finds out that no one, not even her boss, watches the news channel she reports for, she decides that she might as well perform the dares. On her third dare from Barney, she honks her own breasts during a report. Barney, as the fourth dare, wants Robin to do the "Ickey Shuffle" at the end of a report in tribute to Ickey Woods, a famous football player for the Cincinnati Bengals. She plans to do this, but then realizes the importance of her job while interviewing New York City's oldest Hansom cab driver. Even though she does not mean to do this, she steps out of the buggy and falls into a pile of horse droppings, which surprises even Barney. Even though no one had known about the previous dares Robin performed, Barney had the TV tuned to her news channel in the bar. Thus everyone in the bar at the time saw her fall off the buggy. Robin is very embarrassed, especially when Ted reveals that he saw it on the internet. Continuity *Metro News 1's perpetually low ratings are established. *Barney's mocking of Robin's "fluff pieces" echo her own description of her job in the previous episodes. *The first episode in which Robin joins The Gang at MacLaren's Pub, as opposed to being the girl Ted likes, or Lily's friend. Future References (Contains Spoilers) *In , Robin says that falling into horse poop on TV was the most humiliating moment of her life. *Natalie beating Ted up is referenced again in , , and . Footage of that incident will be used in a montage in *Ted decides he wants to date Natalie again because he changed his mind about a shirt. His tendency to run back to old girlfriends for trivial reasons is pointed out in , which reveals he once got back together with Natalie again, for three months, after running out of whipped cream. *Barney says that Robin's salary is small. reveals that her family is very wealthy. Gallery Return of the Shirt.png|Ted finds his shirt. Ted's Shirt.png|Ted shows the shirt to the gang. Robin's Report At City Hall.png|Robin's report at City Hall. Natalie with Ted.png|Natalie on a date with Ted. Natalie.png|Natalie and Ted. Natalie.jpg|Natalie. Natalie beats up Ted.png|Natalie beats up Ted after he breaks up with her. Memorable Quotes Notes and Trivia Goofs and Errors *In this episode, Robin's last name, "Scherbatsky," is pronounced with the second syllable sounding like the name of the animal. In future episodes, everyone pronounces that syllable as "baht" rather than "bat." This mispronunciation of Scherbatsky is prevalent in early episodes of the series. *In the final bar scene Barney eats the olive in his martini, it reappears and he eats it again then it reappears for a third time (there are two olives the first time). * At one point in that last scene, Barney has his hand hovering over his martini holding the olive toothpick, but when the shot changes his hand is down, and could not have moved that quickly. *In , Marshall tells Ted about having to comfort Natalie following their break-up in February 2005. However, the events of this episode occur in October 2005, and Ted says he hasn't seen her in three years. Allusions and Outside References *Marshall mentions , a cult hit family movie made in 1985. * and his family's steakhouses are mentioned. Shula was the head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals from 1992 to 1996. Barney implies that Dave Shula was the coach that cut Ickey Woods. Woods actually retired because of a knee injury and before Shula's actual tenure as head coach. *Anne Dudek also portrayed the role of Precious on the hit sitcom , in which her character was also brutally dumped on her birthday. Music *We Rule the School - Belle & Sebastian *Wonder - John Swihart Other Notes *The episode features the first appearance of the recurring character Wendy the Waitress. Guests * - Natalie * - Brooke * - Producer *Charlene Amoia - Wendy the Waitress *Michael Kagan - Joel Adams *Jackie Geary - Jackie *Ange Billman - Steph *Buck Kartalian - Henry *Katelin Chesna - One Guest *Choice Skinner - Trucker Hat Guy #1 *John Henry Canavan - Trucker Hat Guy #2 Reception * The St. Petersburg Comic Review gave this episode 7 out 10 stars. "Is Ted hopeless? The same girl dumped twice, both times on her birthday?" References External Links * * * uk:Return of the Shirt de:Gutes altes Hemd es:El regreso de la camisa it:Il Ritorno della Camicia Category:Episodes Category:Season 1